Last week I talked about the Edublog Nominees for 2011. Looking at the list of nominees is a great way to see how teachers are using blogs. There are a few teachers in our district who have classroom blogs and use them as a "window into the classroom" to keep parents informed. They post about new learning, units of study, field trips, school events, etc. Several teachers have taken blogging a step further and are blogging with their students. Many students are using their blogs to post about their reading, similar to a reading response journal. Students then comment on each other's posts to encourage further thinking and provide positive feedback.
Kidblog (our preferred student blogging tool) is a popular site designed for elementary and middle school teachers. It is kid friendly and can be set to private. Here is a link to a LiveBinder about Blogging with Students. (Visit Kimberly's Secondary Learn and Earn Blog to learn more about LiveBinder.) Under the Setting Up a Blog tab there is a sub tab with a tutorial to get you started with Kidblog. Also, there is a sub tab called Learning to Blog Using Paper. If you are planning to start blogging with your students, I recommend that you do this lesson with them first. It will give your students a better understanding of blogging. I also recommend visiting the Leaving Comments tab. This will allow you to have a conversation with your students about how to write a quality comment.
If you would like to start blogging with your students, please take a look at these helpful hints, guidelines and other policies through Sharepoint (Intranet, Teaching and Learning, Technology, Teacher Technology Resources, Blogging) and contact Christine for support. You will want to send home the AUG for Student Blogging (Kidblog version) as well as a Parent Letter.
This week, tell us how you might use Kidblog with your students. Tell us how your colleagues are using it with their students. Who would you connect with to plan the management and use of Kidblog?
